Phi Kappa Psi Nationals Reduces Pledging Process to 10 Days And Puts Ban On Hard Liquor

Doctor Franzia8 years ago

If you’re a Phi Kappa Psi and haven’t checked your email recently, get ready for a plethora of sweeping changes to the fraternal experience coming to hit you hard over the next year. The Executive Council is passing down new restrictions ostensibly aimed at risk management that involve an outright ban on hard liquor in chapter houses and a virtual elimination of the pledging process.

Here are some choice words from a special notice by the national office announcing the new policies.

Over the next 6 months, the national fraternity will be taking steps to work with undergraduate members, volunteers, and host institutions to implement the following changes:

Hard alcohol over 15% ABV will no longer be allowed in chapter houses, effective immediately;

Beginning with the 2018 – 2019 academic year, the period formally known as “pledging” will be reduced from six weeks to 10 days. The New Member Education Program will morph into new member integration and a renewed focus on continuing member education.

It’s bad enough when fraternities have to deal with the erosion of the core foundations that make up our unique way of life by those outside the circle like law enforcement and administrators, but I cry a single special tear into my Steel Reserve when a fraternity breaks down themselves.

If I had to guess, this is probably a response to the recent hazing and alcohol-related death of pledge Matthew Ellis at Texas State last Fall.

Never mind that reducing the pledging process to 10 days instead of 6 weeks just calls for making more intense Initiation Weeks. And don’t worry that Matthew wasn’t even in the chapter house when this happened, so a ban on liquor in the chapter house wouldn’t have helped him.

The dominoes are starting to fall, people. Unfortunately, we live in a world that views enacting sudden, harsh restrictions as palpable action. They check the box and move on. There’s little effort to find a workable, integrated solution that thrives on education, safety, and understanding rather than just withdrawing.

The vast majority of all fraternities are safe and enriching places that can govern themselves well enough to not let stupid people do stupid things to each other, and yet for a few bad eggs, everybody’s got to be stomped on together. Time will tell if this is a positive move for Phi Psi, but there’s bound to be a lot of groaning in the process..

Image via Omega Fi